WAG Level 3 skills needed to start training

[happy818]

Hello all! I'm new here, but have been reading many posts and learning lots about the sport! My daughter has taken to gymnastics and keeps asking to do more, more and more gymnastics! She is in a level 2 equivalent training right now but wants more. The next step at her gym is level 3 training/team. What skills do most gyms require a gymnast have before moving up to train level 3?

 

[amiandjim]

The answer is: it totally depends on the gym. Some gyms want them to have all level 3 skills before moving to 3 (big ones would be round off BHS, front hip circle, mill circle, handstand on beam, the beam dismount..we call it a Wendy here). Some gyms will move girls up who do not have all the skills but will probably have them by competition season. So, it really just depends on the philosophy of your specific gym. I would find a parent of a level 3 and ask them.

 

[SurpriseGymMom]

At our gym, you don't have to have all the required skills before but they should be *almost* there. We have certainly had kids that we thought were almost there and then didn't in fact end up getting the skills in time (sometimes one can be very close for a very long time..! ) as well as the other way around.... kids who had the right form and strength who ended up getting all the skills faster than anticipated and excelling. So it would totally depend on the gym, the coaching philosophy and the kid!
I would say as a general guideline I would like a kid to have or be very, very close to a RO-BHS on floor, have or close to a FHC on bars and have a very nice needle on beam (working towards full vertical HS). I would also like to see tight (natural or trained) form (especially in handstands) in general, good strength, ability to take corrections fast and great work ethic. Last but not least, I will take a lesser skilled kid who dares to go for things before a timid kid with all the right things on paper..!
We move kids up with at least 6mo to go before competition season.
Best of luck, it's a fun, bumpy ride!!

 

[gymdog]

No skills are needed, just the necessary developmental milestones, strength, awareness, ability to work. This was originally designed as a pre-competitive level. If they have achieved a basic skill and strength level in gymnastics and have the right physical attributes for JO gymnastics to some extent, they should be able to learn the level 3 skills after starting 3 day a week training.

I look more at long term potential than anything else.

However in some gyms you have to have all the skills. I don't operate that way because I don't have tons and tons of kids in my gym so I wouldn't even have a level 3 team if that was the requirement. Worst comes to worst they'll just repeat level 3 but that's rare too.

 

[2gymkids]

I will echo everyone else: totally depends on the gym. We were told in May/June that our girls would be moving up to Level 3 training hours with plans to compete the next year (starting December/January)....none of them had a ROBHS (they were working on them very slowly to get the correct technique), none of them had a shoot through/mill circle and I don't believe they had front hip circles. Their handstands on beam were getting there. But our gym waits a little longer than many...my DD did her first unspotted ROBHS on a Thursday and her first meet was that Sunday.

 

[Aussie_coach]

We require a gymnast to have all the skills for the next level before she moves up. Skill progression can be hard to predict, no guarantee that a kid will get the skills by comp if she doesn't already have them.

But I am assuming level 3 is the start of real team at your gym, so they are probabaly looking for more than just skills. In selecting team gymnasts gyms look at factors like - strength, flexibility, speed, solid handstands, shaping, posture, technique, gymnasts age, body type, size, level of Committment, effort in training, attitude, behaviour etc.

 

[happy818]

Thanks everyone for your replies! Very helpful

 

[e'smum]

if you have the coach's email you could email her/him and ask what your gym is looking for/requiring and perhaps let them know she is enjoying level 2 but wants more time in the gym.

in our gym the level 2s are working on level 3 skills. in fact, my dd went in as a non-compete to level 3 her first year with only ROBHS and her bestie was in level 2 doing less hours and her bestie had the bars mill circle before her. possibly the shoot through as well.

you may want to check to see if they offer open gym hours or any tumbling clinics or tumbling classes. our gym did all 3 and that is how my dd got her ROBHS w/o being on team or even in a class (plus we did privates with the HC). she was doing dance at the time and i was wanting her to do acro dance. ha. silly mom dreams.

 

[SMH]

It seems to differ greatly from gym to gym! Our level 3's are not required to have all the level 3 skills- they go from rec, to pre team, then have a tryout for team. Once they make team, then they learn the 'big' level 3 skills.

 

[CuriousCate]

For our gym the girls need to have all the lvl 3 skills (they don't need to be pretty but they need to have them) and a bunch of strength and flexibility tests (piked seated rope climb, leg lifts, splits, etc) before they make it. They do the skills and strength testing in August and for a winter meets season.

 

[fuzi]

So much of this is gym dependent. We compete level 2 and our level 2s learn and train their level 3 skills. They don't move to level 3 until they have all their level 3 skills and meet certain strength and flexibility standards.